Rachel Getting Married (2008/Sony Blu-ray)
Picture:
B Sound: B- Extras: C+ Film: C+
I have
been very unhappy with Jonathan Demme’s narrative work after The Silence Of The Lambs. Philadelphia
was very mixed, Beloved also not bad
but longer than it should have been, then he made duds that also happened to be
terrible remakes in The Manchurian
Candidate and The Truth About
Charlie, which failed to miserably at remaking Stanley Donen’s Charade. Now, he tries to get back to business with Rachel Getting Married and even has
some success.
Anne
Hathaway (rightly nominated for her performance here) plays Kym, the sister of
a happy bride to be (Rosemary DeWitt) which only brings up more of her own
personal problems. Dysfunctional more
than usual, her personal problem start to slowly manifest during what should be
a happy reunion, but ten years of rehab have only cursed her additions if that
and resolved none of the personal pain she is going through. Written with a superior sense of melodrama by
Jenny Lumet, Demme can handle female situations, but there is a disconnect
between himself and the material which causes the film to be uneven and throw
off some of the tension.
Debra
Winger also stars with a decent cast, but the film never feels totally complete
or well-rounded when all is over, making it a problematic film that traps its
good performances. Demme has just not
been that good and you watch as if he is trying to get warmed up and never gets
there. If you like Hathaway, it is worth
it for her, but much of this is still too predictable and what we have seen
already. Yet, it also shows unfortunate
circumstances that seem to repeat themselves no matter how often we see this
kind of material. Of course, Hathaway
can act when given a challenge.
The 1080p
1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image was shot on High Definition video and
looks it with the usual color limits, detail issues and motion blur that film
would not deliver like this in an HD shoots generic way. Clean is not clear, as this will prove. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix is dialogue-based,
so its limits are more understandable.
This is well-recorded audio for what it is, but don’t expect anything
spectacular. Extras include deleted
scenes that are not bad, cast/crew Q&A, cast/crew feature-length audio
commentary, a piece not he Wedding Band, a behind the scenes featurette and BD
Live functions for more information and interactivity.
- Nicholas Sheffo
